Mylinh's Journey
Only two years of age, Mylinh plays by the door waiting for her father to return home. After hours of waiting, Mylinh’s father doesn’t return and her mother grows worried. Soon after, their household receives a phone call. Mylinh is hit with a hard blow, a pain she will endure forever. Her father has been executed by the communists. Too young and innocent to realize what had just happened, she returns to play by the door. Only two years of her life had been spent with him, and even those had been brief due to his frequent departures for the army. As a result, she never had a chance to get to know her own father. After this incident, she needs time to heal the wounds, but Mylinh comes back stronger. In 1967, in the heart of Vietnam, Mylinh
is born into the arms of her loving mother and father. She says her life began nicely, until the age of two, when she heard the news. After the loss of her father, she had a tough time understanding what had happened; Mylinh desperately wanted him back. Ever since this incident, she has been a free spirit; most of her childhood was spent wandering the streets of her small, distant community. It is far from all resources, such as school (a 45 minute bike ride) and markets. Other than the commute, this community is “paradise,” and most of her extended family and friends live in this neighborhood. All the children play together, the adults get along, they’re “one huge family.” Though in the midst of a war, the streets of her small community are “very safe. If her [my] parents were not home, she [I] could go to the neighbor’s house and stay with them”. She did not feel like she was in danger. Three years after the loss of her father, Mylinh begins school, something she takes great pride in and wants to succeed in. Mylinh’s sister, is one of the best students at the school. This gives Mylinh an advantage because now she can get help from her about her studies. Mylinh is “acing all her classes,” and “enjoying” her youth. Little did she know the feeling will soon be rubbed away by poverty and communism.
is born into the arms of her loving mother and father. She says her life began nicely, until the age of two, when she heard the news. After the loss of her father, she had a tough time understanding what had happened; Mylinh desperately wanted him back. Ever since this incident, she has been a free spirit; most of her childhood was spent wandering the streets of her small, distant community. It is far from all resources, such as school (a 45 minute bike ride) and markets. Other than the commute, this community is “paradise,” and most of her extended family and friends live in this neighborhood. All the children play together, the adults get along, they’re “one huge family.” Though in the midst of a war, the streets of her small community are “very safe. If her [my] parents were not home, she [I] could go to the neighbor’s house and stay with them”. She did not feel like she was in danger. Three years after the loss of her father, Mylinh begins school, something she takes great pride in and wants to succeed in. Mylinh’s sister, is one of the best students at the school. This gives Mylinh an advantage because now she can get help from her about her studies. Mylinh is “acing all her classes,” and “enjoying” her youth. Little did she know the feeling will soon be rubbed away by poverty and communism.